If you’re someone with modest daily caffeine intake, the equivalent of a couple cups of coffee a day, a study published in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism suggests a supplementation strategy for potentially improving Olympic-distance triathlon performance.

Fourteen male and 12 female competitors supplemented with 6 mg of encapsulated caffeine per kg of body weight 45 to 60 minutes before starting the event. Compared to times without supplementing, caffeine helped subjects finish the swimming stage an average of 3.7% faster and shave 1.3% off their total race time.